-You were born and raised in Nagasaki City. How long did you live in Nagasaki?

I lived in Nagasaki until I graduated from high school and entered the jazz department at a university in New York. Born in the town of Uo, where Meganebashi is located, he spent his youth in Shindaiku-cho, near the Suwa Shrine. I think you can imagine that I am a person who knows the area, but in reality I am a city boy (lol)
At that time, my father was running a jazz cafe called ``COMBO'' until I was in elementary school, and my mother was a classical piano teacher, so I grew up in an environment where I learned the basics of piano from the age of four. Perhaps the reason I fell in love with jazz was because I was guided from birth.
 

-Please tell us about your memories of Nagasaki City, where you lived until you were 18 years old.

There are already a lot of them. She started working as a jazz pianist when she became a junior high school student, but I can't say enough about her life being completely devoted to jazz. In fact, I appeared in ``Nagasaki Kunchi'' three times as a performer at the dedication dance held at Suwa Shrine: when I was in kindergarten, when I was in the third grade of elementary school, and when I was in the sixth grade of elementary school. I only get to work in Odori-machi once every seven years, but since I moved to Uo-no-machi and then Shindaiku-machi, I was lucky enough to experience it three times. The Hirado family was a "kunchi idiot" with a deep love for their hometown.
 

Looking back on my memories from those days, I have many other memories of spending time in Nagasaki City. While practicing the piano for about five hours every day, when I was in elementary school I joined a local baseball club and played baseball in the playground of Irabayashi Elementary School, and after playing catch with my father and friends along the Nakashima River, Eating Rinchirin ice cream was also a part of my daily life. I went to high school at Kaisei High School. Since the school was located in the Higashi-Yamate district, there were many historical buildings in the area, and looking back, I realize that the experience I had while commuting to and from school was unique to Nagasaki, a town rich in exotic atmosphere. When I was in high school, I once rowed a boat in Sakito during the "Peron" (Nagasaki Peron Championship) held in early summer. I have so many memories of Nagasaki where I spent my youth that I can't tell you all about it.

- Moved to the United States after graduating from high school. She enrolled in a jazz department at a university in New York and after training as a pianist, she returned to Japan. He formed the jazz band "quasimode" in Tokyo and also started a solo project. You are a leader in Japan's jazz club scene and are active in a wide range of fields. What made you deepen your connection to Nagasaki, where you were born and raised?

FMin Nagasaki“YUSUKE HIRADO MUSIC HORIZON” (every Friday from 21:00)21:55), and I was given the opportunity to serve as its personality. It started in 2015 and is still on air every week. At the opening of the program, I would talk about the latest information about Nagasaki, and as I learned more about the current state of Nagasaki, my love for my hometown deepened, and I began to want to liven up the town where I was born and raised. I would be happy if I could connect people through music and contribute to a sustainable future.
 

With this in mind, we launched the music business "DEJIMA MUSIC HERITAGE" in 2020. By holding events centered around jazz, we hope that everyone in Nagasaki City can experience the real thing. Although we are still just one of the weakest business organizations, we hope to continue to love Nagasaki City from the bottom of our hearts and move forward one step at a time, gaining support from as many people, companies, and organizations as possible.

2023In November 11, he also became the general producer of "NAGASAKI CITY JAZZ," which was newly launched in 2023 as an initiative of the Nagasaki Station Area Urban Development Promotion Council. As the first project, we will hold a two-day jazz event from December 12th to 9th with a variety of programs, including performances by our professional players, local artists, and junior high and high school brass bands (the venue will be an amusement park). Plaza Nagasaki (Kamome Hiroba, multipurpose plaza). Thanks to all of you, 10 people came to see us over both days, and I believe it was an event that connected the city and people through the power of music. We will continue to be active in this area.
 

- Mr. Hirato's feelings, full of love for his hometown, were conveyed. Last question. What are the points of Nagasaki that you would recommend to people from outside the prefecture?

In Nagasaki, where various cultures have been born and nurtured through exchanges with foreign countries, the ``Wakaran (Wakaran) culture'' has taken root throughout the city. If you're visiting for sightseeing, you'll definitely want to experience a lot of historical romance. Just by walking around Nagasaki City, you can encounter many exotic areas. For example, 2023 marks the 200th anniversary of the arrival of Siebold, the great man who introduced Japan to the world. If you follow Siebold's footsteps from Dejima to Narutaki, you might have a different journey.

➡Siebold 200th Anniversary Project | Digital Exhibition

Another recommended course is the classic route, but we also recommend a trip through the Higashi-Yamate district, which was established as a foreign settlement at the end of the Edo period and is still dotted with stone pavements and Western-style buildings. You can see many remnants and scenery from the settlement era. Nagasaki is a very nice city, to say the least!